Shut it down people, we're done here

Not the blog. Painting, I mean. (Okay, not really, but work with me here)

Turns out that we can have computers paint for us now. More jobs replaced by computers, I guess.

Some of these aren't too bad, really. I kind of like those four that make the upper-left corner. If I saw any of these at a gallery I wouldn't be terribly shocked.

The article is worth a read: the challenges of programming an AI to make works of art that are novel enough that they capture a viewer's interest but not so "out there" that they push people away. They actually refer to studies where viewers had to guess if works were man- or machine-made and people have difficulty telling.

Again, I kind of like some of them. I'd put a couple of those on my wall.

It does raise some interesting questions about what we actually do when we make art and what art actually is. I think that many people would say that the human spirit behind a work is what makes something "art" as opposed to "oh, that's nice." Animals at the zoo can swish a paintbrush around and now a computer program can generate works that give people pause and people would probably argue that without intent, these works straddle the line between "decoration" and "art.". What's the difference between these and what a painter does? Computers and (probably) animals don't have intent to make art, but often in the case of abstraction, people don't either. Sometimes I make stuff that doesn't "mean" anything but I take joy in the act of creation and discovery. Are the works I posted last time more "art" than these? When I start asking myself "what IS art?" I invariably think of this:

(Happy 100th birthday, Fountain!)

Is "Fountain" art? Well, Duchamp would say it's art because he says it's art which was the point of it all and the past century of art has been largely based on that idea.

So are those computer generated images art? Maybe.

Am I going to throw away my paints any time soon? No, I don't think so. I do wish I could find myself in L.A. next month to see the computer algorithm's "one-man show," but I guess I'll be missing it.

My work at the Manitou Art Center!

This is the second year I've participated in the Manitou Art Center's annual fundraiser and it is this Saturday. (Look it up here! You should go!) I was really excited to get two pieces in the fundraising auction because they're some new abstracts I've been working on:

They are both acrylic on canvas, 24 by 24 in. (I'm not terribly happy about the white balance in the blue piece - the whites in it are really white, not cream-colored)

I'm excited to do more bigger abstracts like this in the future (there is a monochromatic show coming up I'd like to enter something in) but for now,I hope someone gives these paintings a good home because it's for a good cause!

Jim Carrey: "I Needed Color"

So this short (six-minute) documentary has been making the rounds lately and after my instinctual "ugh, another actor that thinks he's Picasso" I gave it a watch because, hey - six minutes.

Turns out, it's pretty decent. The documentary, I mean.

The articles about the short talk about his art in terms from "some truly jaw-dropping paintings" to "He just should not be showing this stuff to anyone and expecting anything except derision." You make your own call on it. Personally, I'm not a fan of the art.

What I did like was the documentary's take on the creation of art and its power to heal. He was going through a painful divorce and he turned to art as therapy, which is an idea I can totally get behind. People use art as part of programs to stave off the effects of Alzheimer's as well as helping the effects of depression. Some days it's a struggle to get to the canvas, but when I do, the shot of endorphins I get really helps me out. It sure is better than watching TV all night, that's for sure so even if I can't get behind his art I understand his need to create and the good it does him.

Hail to the King, baby!

Making excuses about not blogging is lame, so I won't do it.

Instead, I will make a post to honor the King of Comics, Jack Kirby.

He was born exactly one hundred years ago today, August 28, 1917.  Undoubtedly the single most influential artist (if not the most influential person) in comics. His creations and influences are just too long to list here but man, was he a creator. Captain America, almost all of the early Marvel art, invented romance comics during a superhero lull, incredible runs at both Marvel and DC...I could go on and on and on...

Happy birthday, Jack!

(As an added bonus, here is an io9 article with a great video where other comic creators talk about Kirby's influence)

A New Project!

I am collaborating with a friend on a new project - he made the initial design and carved the wood, I am painting it (personally, I think I'm getting off easy but don't tell him). Here's a picture with the undercoat:

The black lining is fairly deep - deep enough that I had to use umpteen coats of spray primer to get the whole thing coated. Every time I thought I was finished, I picked it up and looked at a different angle and lo! Bare spots in the crevices. When that part was finally finished, I painted the raised areas in a few thin coats of white.

I'm not exactly sure of the color scheme, but I'm probably going for a more traditional Ganesha but I'll probably take the printouts I made and play around with come colored pencils for a while.

DO

In 1965, the sculptor Eva Hesse was in the middle of a creative block so she wrote to her friend and fellow artist Sol Lewitt (whose Wall Drawing #370 I got to see again at the Met last week). His response is probably the most motivating thing I've heard in a while. If you want to see his actual letter, it's here) but here are some of my favorite parts:


Learn to say "Fuck You" to the world once in a while. You have every right to.

---

Don't worry about cool, make your own uncool. Make your own, your own world. If you fear, make it work for you — draw & paint your fear & anxiety.

---

 Try to do some BAD work — the worst you can think of and see what happens but mainly relax and let everything go to hell — you are not responsible for the world — you are only responsible for your work — so DO IT.


 I first heard about this letter when the always-great Open Culture blog posted a video of Benedict Cumberbatch reading it aloud. It's the (NSFW) kick in the pants that everyone needs sometimes.

(by way of Open Culture and Letters of Note)

Edward Hopper

I recently got back from a trip to New York City where I spent most of my time lurking in museums. One of the paintings I was excited to see (again) is one of my favorite paintings at the Met - Edward Hopper's The Lighthouse at Two Lights:

I'm sure many artists would call him trite and provincial, but I really enjoy Hopper's work: simple yet it draws you in with every painting having some hidden story and uniquely American with an undercurrent of loneliness (I suppose growing up outside of Chicago and frequently getting to see Nighthawks at the Art Institute  on field trips didn't exactly hurt either).

The Muddy Colors blog recently posted about Hopper as their "Artist of the Month." Worth a look and I promise to write more about my trip and what I saw. (Alas, no pictures from the Frick collection.)

How do you get to Carnegie Hall?

"Practice, practice, practice!"

Something that is on my mind a lot lately is the idea of practice and skill acquisition. I've read a few interesting books on the idea as I continue painting and I really think the concept of "deliberate practice" has helped me as I continue to learn. This short video summarizes a lot of research in the field.

Getting ready for a new show!

I've been spending some time this month getting ready for a show and I am submitting my stuff later today: the Modbo gallery in downtown Colorado Springs is doing a show called "Drowned in Moonlight," which commemorates famous people that passed away is 2016. Here are the pieces I am taking over:

A busy couple of months

Boy, I kind of lost my blogging mojo for a bit there. Good to be back.

I didn't paint as much over the holidays as I would have liked, but I did some. Here's something I have recently finished...

(Confrontation, acrylic on canvas, 16 by 20 inches)